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Here's the situation. You have a multiple combat with five units, A and B as "attackers" (it is their turn), X Y and Z as "defenders"

Combat looks like this to start:



ZZZZZZ.........................
AAAAAA..........................
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
.....................BBBBBBBBB
................................YYYY

During combat, squad X is wiped out. So before pile in moves, we now we have say: [edited for clarity]

ZZZ
AAAAAA
.......................BBBBBB
.............................YYY


In this case, the squad that was holding these combats together has been destroyed. Is it still a multiple combat? Is it remaining a multiple combat entirely up to the attacker in this case - he can choose to have a member of squad B not in base to base pile into squad Z, or from A into Y, preserving the multiple combat? Or is he required to do so if possible because he was already in a multiple combat? Obviously the defender in this case doesn't get a pile in move because everything is in base to base.

Quite simply, the question is this: If your multiple combat ends up as two obviously physically separate single combats after combat resolution but before pile-in moves must you:

A.) pile in in a way to preserve the multiple combats if possible
B.) pile in however you want within the rules for Pile-in (6" move to try to get in base to base with somebody)
C.) pile in only into your new, separate combats - A/Z and B/Y
D.) Something else?

After writing all this out it seems the answer is obviously B but I thought I'd ask anyway. [edit] My reasoning is that there is no reason to assume this is not a multiple combat still until every step of the close combat phase has finished. Therefore the pile in moves can be however the players want, within the pile-in rules. Once pile in has completed legally then either the combats remain multiple or become separate depending on what was done in pile in.

... You can only pile in to some one you were already in combat with.

In your example units Z and Y are only in combat with A and B (respectively) and so can only pile into them

Even though theres a big of gap its still one combat by the rules so I agree that B is the only answer.

Its not very intuitive but its very unlikely the situation would occour anyhow in such an extreme fashion.

Tri wrote: You can only pile in to some one you were already in combat with.

Its a multiple combat, so they're are all in combat with each other... they just aren't all engaged.

B. This can possibly result in splitting the multiple combat into two separate combats, due to the unengaged/btb/2" coherency requirements. After all, if B cannot reach Z and maintain coherency, then B cannot pile onto Z. Same for A and Y.

But.... is it really 2 separate combats? Or would future turns still resolve it like one combat still?

It would be two separate combats since there is not a unit engaged with both enemy units.

Yeah, once the pile in moves happen, if units can't stay engaged they would normally just consolidate and the combat between them would end. Seems you'd just apply the same principle here - if they aren't engaged at the end of the pile in moves they're not part of the same combat anymore. If we had something like combat involving:

C - a carnifex

G - some genestealers

P - some plague marines.

After the first round of combat before pile in it looks like this:

..G........
GPG.....C
..G........

The carnifex can't engage the plague marines anymore because the remaining members are surrounded and you can only engage by being in base to base, or within 2 inches of someone in your unit who's in base to base. So the carnifex just consolidates and the combat goes on next round with just the genestealers and plague marine.

By the same logic, if the Carnifex was still engaged with something else, but nothing was connecting the combats, they'd become separate combats. If you're not engaged with someone you're not engaged with someone, even if you were at one point and that combat hasn't ended.

Unfortunately this isn't stated explicitly for multiple combats.